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Sep 29, 2011

It seems that wherever you travel most mannequins appear to have European features. Perhaps there is some worldwide monopoly on the often freakish figures, much like Monsanto has on soybeans?

This bobble headed mannequin outside a uniform shop in Dongdaemun Market in Seoul, South Korea would no doubt make some small children cry. Perhaps she is overcompensating for her headless comrades?

These androgynous mannequins in an Issey Miyake showroom in Tokyo are minimal and more chic. The fit right in Aoyama, an upscale fashion shopping district.

This feminine looking mannequin in Bur Dubai Souk in Dubai looks displeased to be wearing a gutra (head cloth) and dishdasha shirt dress traditionally worn by men in the UAE. Perhaps her male counterpart was on holiday the week I was there.

I’m contemplating starting a mannequin business that represents the cultures of the world. Naturally proper research would involve extensive travel.

Sep 25, 2011

I’m heading to Cape Cod tomorrow for the rest of the week. If the weather cooperates, this is a good time of the year to go – after the summer crowds and before the gloom of the end of the year kicks in.

Looking forward to getting out of the city, photographing this scenic part of the country and reading and sleeping by the ocean. A day trip to Nantucket may factor in as well.

I have posts lined up while I’m away. When I return I’ll also be posting more regularly again and catching up on travels from earlier this year.

Sep 16, 2011

Haight Ashbury in San Francisco was the epicenter of 1960s hippie culture in the U.S. Today some remnants of that era still survive if you don’t include the touristy shops selling tie dye and Grateful Dead t-shirts.

On the corner of Haight and Ashbury is a clock permanently set to 4:20 p.m., which is known as international bong hit time.

420 is code for those involved in cannabis culture. Reports vary as to where 420 originated. Urban legend has it that 420 is police code for marijuana. Others argue 4:20 is the time a group of high school students in the neighborhood in the 1970s used to meet after school to partake.

Today April 20th is an unofficial holiday for cannabis culture folks to gather and light up. In San Francisco the day is celebrated in Hippie Hill in Golden Gate Park.

I happened to walk by Hippie Hill on April 20th of this year and saw large groups of people sitting in circles engulfed in plumes of smoke. At the time I was unaware of the holiday and just assumed this is what the locals do in San Francisco.

Have you ever unexpectedly stumbled across a counter culture or unusual holiday or festival in your travels?